title: Semiconductor hierarchically structured flower-like clusters for dye-sensitized solar cells with nearly 100% charge collection efficiency.
abstract: By combining the ease of producing ZnO nanoflowers with the advantageous chemical stability of TiO2, hierarchically structured hollow TiO2 flower-like clusters were yielded via chemical bath deposition (CBD) of ZnO nanoflowers, followed by their conversion into TiO2 flower-like clusters in the presence of TiO2 precursors. The effects of ZnO precursor concentration, precursor amount, and reaction time on the formation of ZnO nanoflowers were systematically explored. Dye-sensitized solar cells fabricated by utilizing these hierarchically structured ZnO and TiO2 flower clusters exhibited a power conversion efficiency of 1.16% and 2.73%, respectively, under 100 mW cm(-2) illumination. The intensity modulated photocurrent/photovoltage spectroscopy (IMPS/IMVS) studies suggested that flower-like structures had a fast electron transit time and their charge collection efficiency was nearly 100%.
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA. zhiqun.lin@mse.gatech.edu.
authors.forename: Xukai
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.forename: Hsiang-Yu
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Meidan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Zhiqun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D004396:Coloring Agents / Q000737:chemistry*; D004566:Electrodes; D004583:Electrons; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D012666:Semiconductors; D012993:Solar Energy; D014025:Titanium / Q000737:chemistry; D015034:Zinc Oxide / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D004396:Coloring Agents; C009495:titanium dioxide; D014025:Titanium; D015034:Zinc Oxide